The Development Bureau invited the market to submit expressions of interest (EOI) for the three pilot areas of large-scale land disposal in Hung Shui Kiu/Ha Tsuen New Development Area, Fanling North New Development Area and San Tin Technopole on December 31, 2024. The invitation for the EOI closed today (March 31), and a total of 22 submissions have been received.

     The spokesperson said, "The enterprises/organisations making the submissions include local and Mainland developers, contractors, conglomerates and e-commerce logistic company, etc. We will immediately consolidate and analyse the collected feedbacks to determine the area, development parameters, works requirements and financial arrangements etc for the pilot areas, in order to finalise the tender details and conditions later."

     The spokesperson added, "As the feedbacks involve commercially sensitive information from individual enterprises, they will not be disclosed. However, relevant views will be duly reflected in the tender conditions in due course as appropriate."

     Large-scale land disposal is one of the innovative and diversified development approaches in the Northern Metropolis. Under this approach, the Government will identify sizeable parcels of land, including those with commercial value and public facilities, for integrated development by successful tenderers. This aims to better leverage market forces to expedite the development of the Northern Metropolis while reducing the Government's financial outlay. The Development Bureau will take forward the three pilot areas in full steam, with a view to commencing the tendering work progressively from the second half of this year to next year.

     The Social Welfare Department (SWD) today (March 31) held the Kick-off Ceremony themed "Act Together for a Caring Community" to announce the extension of the District Services and Community Care Teams – Scheme on Supporting Elderly and Carers to all 18 districts for a period of 12 months starting from tomorrow (April 1) to provide support and care to elderly persons and carers in need.

​     Addressing the ceremony, the Deputy Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Cheuk Wing-hing, said that all 452 Care Teams across the territory will help identify elderly persons and carers in need through visits and contacts in the coming 12 months. Apart from sending them care and providing assistance to ensure elderly persons and carers feel the warmth and support from the community, the Care Teams will also refer those in need to social welfare service units for suitable support.

​     He said that with the extension of the Scheme to 18 districts the Care Teams are expected to reach over 60 000 households in need. He hoped that members of the Care Teams would go beyond serving as care ambassadors in the community by strengthening collaboration with other stakeholders. In addition to encouraging carers to use the Designated Hotline for Carer Support 182 183 and the Information Gateway for Carers (carers.hk), Care Teams will also enhance communications with the Designated Hotline for Carer Support to arrange visits or contacts for the carers in need.

​     At the ceremony, Mr Cheuk presented certificates of appointment to the Care Teams of 18 districts. Accompanied by the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun; the Permanent Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Ms Alice Lau; and the Director of Social Welfare, Mr Edward To, he also presided at a pledging ceremony to start the extension of the Scheme.

​     Immediately after the ceremony, the Care Teams of Yau Tsim Mong and Sham Shui Po Districts conducted home visits in the two Districts with the respective District Officers and District Social Welfare Officers to introduce welfare services to households and encourage them to seek help whenever necessary.

​     The SWD will arrange trainings for the Care Teams, covering communication skills, information on local social welfare services and referral procedures. The SWD will also maintain close communication with the Care Teams in various subdistricts and provide assistance to ensure a smooth implementation of the Scheme.

​     Piloted in Tsuen Wan and Southern Districts in the first quarter of 2024 to identify singleton/doubleton elderly persons and carers of elders persons/persons with disabilities in need through visits or contacts by the Care Teams, the Scheme has made great achievements. By the end of February this year, 36 Care Teams in the two Districts had visited or contacted over 7 200 singleton/doubleton elderly persons and carers of elderly persons/persons with disabilities, making over 1 200 referrals for welfare services, including elderly services, services for persons with disabilities, mental health services, family services and financial assistance. Moreover, more than 300 elderly persons and persons with disabilities received subsidies for the installation of emergency alarm systems through referrals made by the Care Teams.

            

     â€‹To implement the measures on sports promotion in the community as announced in the 2024 Policy Address and further support new sports, the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) will conduct a series of new sports programmes this year to encourage wider public participation.

     Starting from May, the LCSD will organise fun days for new sports, covering dodgeball, kin-ball, pickleball and tchoukball. Qualified instructors from sports organisations will provide sports demonstrations and teach participants the basic skills of the new sports. Participants can also enjoy various fun-filled activities. Interested members of the public are welcome to join.

     The fun days will be open for application from tomorrow (April 1), free of charge. Details are available at the LCSD's dedicated website (www.lcsd.gov.hk/en/nsp/index.html).

     The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department today (March 31) released the findings of its food safety report for last month. The results of about 4 200 food samples tested (including food items purchased online) were found to be satisfactory except for three unsatisfactory samples that were announced earlier. The overall satisfactory rate was 99.9 per cent.

     A CFS spokesman said about 1 000 food samples were collected for microbiological tests, and about 3 200 samples were taken for chemical and radiation level tests.

     The microbiological tests covered pathogens and hygiene indicators; the chemical tests included testing for pesticides, preservatives, metallic contaminants, colouring matters, veterinary drug residues and others; and the radiation level tests included testing for radioactive caesium and iodine in samples collected from imported food from different regions.

     The samples comprised about 1 500 samples of vegetables and fruit and their products; about 300 samples of cereals, grains and their products; about 500 samples of meat and poultry and their products; about 600 samples of milk, milk products and frozen confections; about 500 samples of aquatic and related products; and about 800 samples of other food commodities (including beverages, bakery products and snacks).

     The three unsatisfactory samples comprised a Kudzu sample and a frozen snake meat sample detected with metallic contaminants exceeding the legal limit, and a fresh beef sample found to contain sulphur dioxide. 

     The CFS has taken follow-up actions on the above-mentioned unsatisfactory samples, including informing the vendors concerned of the test results, instructing them to stop selling the affected food items, and tracing the sources of the food items in question.

     The spokesman reminded the food trade to ensure that food is fit for human consumption and meets legal requirements. Consumers should patronise reliable shops when buying food and maintain a balanced diet to minimise food risks.

     Separately, in response to the Japanese Government's discharge of nuclear-contaminated water at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Station, the CFS will continue enhancing the testing on imported Japanese food, and make reference to the risk assessment results to adjust relevant surveillance work in a timely manner. The CFS will announce every working day on its dedicated webpage (www.cfs.gov.hk/english/programme/programme_rafs/daily_japan_nuclear_incidents.html) the radiological test results of the samples of food imported from Japan, with a view to enabling the trade and members of the public to have a better grasp of the latest safety information.

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:

     â€‹The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) Chief Executive, Mr Eddie Yue, and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor, Dr Eli M. Remolona, Jr., led a bilateral meeting to exchange views and strengthen co-operation on various areas of central banking on March 28 in the Philippines.

     Hosted by the BSP, officials from the two institutions discussed and shared insights on capital market development, digital payments and connectivity, digital banking, and sustainable finance. In particular, the meeting covered issues such as bond market and ecosystem; multilateral digital payment projects; cybersecurity risk management and consumer protection; digital financial literacy; climate risk stress testing and other green finance initiatives.

     The HKMA and the BSP also explored potential collaboration, to further broaden and enhance their longstanding co-operation and bilateral ties.